You will be delighted when you sink your teeth into these Gluten Free Swiss Brunsli Cookies! They boast sweet chocolate flavor and have the right amount of chewy, soft, and tender. These brunsli cookies are naturally gluten free, too!
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Everything about these star-shaped brunsli cookies is fantastic! They have a slight nuttiness to them that leaves a lasting impression. If you love cookies as much as we do, here are some of my best Gluten Free Holiday Cookie Recipes to try.
These chocolate cookies made with almond flour are quick and easy. If you love these gluten free Swiss brunsli cookies, check out some of my gluten-free cookie recipes.
My family has shared a lot of delicious European cookie recipes with me. You will want to try these Gluten Free Pfeffernusse Cookies, too!
Allergen Information:
These Swiss cookies are gluten-free, soy-free, oat-free, and dairy-free (if you use dairy-free chocolate.)
Ingredient Notes:
- Almond Flour – I highly recommend using almond flour and not almond meal. Almond flour is milled to be finer, so you don’t get the grittiness. I highly recommend Anthony’s Blanched Almond Flour, which is blanched to remove the peels.
- Chocolate – I used shaved Ghirardelli chocolate, but you can use any ground chocolate or Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Melting Wafers.
- Eggs – Use size large eggs.
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
Step 1: Add your chocolate flakes/shavings to a large microwave-safe
Step 2: Melt your chocolate in your microwave. I suggest 20-second intervals, stirring between intervals, to avoid burning your chocolate.
Step 3: Add the egg whites to a
Step 4: Make sure your egg whites are completely whipped. Here, you can see how the egg whites are now stiff peaks.
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Step 5: Gently fold the almond flour, sugar, and chocolate mixtures into the egg whites.
Step 6: Wrap the cookie dough in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step 7: Roll the cookie dough out to 1/4 inch thickness and use a star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out star cookies.
Step 8: Place the cookies on a parchment-lined
👀 Sandi Says: Optional: dust the cookies with powdered sugar. You may also love these Gluten Free Cinnamon Sugar Cookies.
Frequently Asked Questions:
The cookies are also known as Basler Brunsli. They are well known for their tender, soft texture and spicy, nutty flavor. These gluten free Swiss brunsli cookies are famous in Switzerland.
They are a delicious treat typically served during Christmas. They traditionally contain spices like cinnamon and cocoa, and they are frequently cut into heart shapes.
Store the gluten free Swiss brunsli cookies in an airtight container. Make sure to keep them away from extreme heat, like a dishwasher or in direct sunlight. They will last 3-5 days if they are correctly stored.
Yes, you can freeze these gluten free Swiss brunsli cookies. Lay them flat on a cookie sheet and place them in the freezer for 2-3 hours. This will flash-freeze them so they don’t stick together. Then, remove them from the cookie sheet and place them in a freezer bag or airtight container.
🔑 Sandi says: If you make these around the holidays, you will want to check out all these delicious Gluten Free Christmas Cookies recipes. Serve them with a mug of this Homemade Spiked Hot Chocolate
More Gluten Free Holiday Cookies
- We love these buttery Gluten Free Butter Cookies over the holidays.
- If you love eggnog, these Crinkled Gluten Free Eggnog Cookies are delicious.
- Full of roasted chestnut flavor, these Gluten Free Roasted Chestnut Cookies are perfect for the holidays.
- Candy canes add lots of minty flavor to these Gluten Free Chocolate Madeleines.
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Swiss Brunsli Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups almond flour * see note
- 1 cup cane sugar
- 6 ounces chocolate finely chopped/shaved
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 egg whites
- Optional: Powdered sugar for dusting.
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Add 1 3/4 cups almond flour, 1 cup cane sugar, and 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon to a bowl and whisk to blend.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, add 6 ounces chocolate and melt. I like to melt 20 seconds at a time, stirring between each 20-second interval so the chocolate doesn't burn.
- In a large bowl, add 2 egg whites and mix on high speed with an electric mixer until the egg whites form stiff peaks.
- Add the melted chocolate and almond flour mixture to the egg whites and gently fold together to mix.
- Place the cookie dough onto a piece of wax paper and wrap it. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Remove the cookie dough and roll it out to 1/4 inch thickness.
- Use a star-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the cookies.
- Place the cookie stars onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove onto a cooling rack.
- Optional: Optional: Powdered sugar for dusting..
Notes
- You do not want to use cocoa powder for this recipe.
- I recommend using almond flour and not almond meal because almond meal is much thicker than a grind.
- These cookies will keep fresh for up to 4 days in an airtight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, my rule of thumb is to add more flour if your dough or batter is wet and add more liquid if the dough or batter is too dry!
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
Note this post was updated from an older October 2019 post with more recipe details.
I’m just learning about gluten free baking. Your tips and notes are appreciated I was looking at you Swiss Brunsli cookie and you don’t indicate what kind of chocolate. bittersweet, unsweetened, semi-sweet. There’s milk chocolate and dark chocolate, etc. What works best?
I use bittersweet chocolate, but any type is fine. I would think milk chocolate would be too sweet.
What kind of chocolate is used? Unsweetened, semisweet, bittersweet, milk chocolate? Can you use chopped chocolate? I do not see a link.
You can definitely use chopped chocolate. I used shaved, but any ground chocolate should work.
Can you make these with a different type flour other than almond? Maybe coconut?
Hi Adrienne, this recipe won’t work with other flours. I would look for a chocolate cut out sugar cookie recipe if you want to replicate the stars. Coconut flour absorbs a ton of liquid, the opposite of how almond flour behaves.
When do you add the sugar?
Hi Nancy, it goes in with the almond flour. I clarified the directions so it is easier to see. Thank you :-).
These cookies look wonderful! What is the difference between ‘ground chocolate’ and cocoa powder? The chocolate product you linked to has the horrid ‘may contain wheat’ label so I will not chose that particular brand.
Hi Kim, I clarified in the recipe more, I hope it helps. Ground chocolate is more like shaved chocolate…which is sweetened and melts differently from cocoa powder. You are right the wrong shaved chocolate was linked. Thank you :-).